For those of you that follow me on Instagram (@mrsislandbreeze), you know that I recently traveled to Jamaica in search of inspiration for some new recipes. While I was there, I had the pleasure of taking a cooking class with Bagga, a chef at the famous Rockhouse and Pushcart restaurants in Negril. During class, Bagga showed me how he makes Old Time Synting, a seafood stew that is served at the Rockhouse restaurant. I took what I learned from Bagga and gave it my own little twist. Hopefully, I have made him proud. Let’s get to it.
P.S.: If you are more of a visual learner, you can check a video of me making the recipe by subscribing to the Mrs. Island Breeze YouTube channel.
P.P.S.: If you are headed to Negril, do consider staying at the Rockhouse Hotel. The hotel is beautiful, the staff is amazing, and the food is phenomenal. Be sure to tell Bagga that Mrs. Island Breeze says hello.
Servings: 5-6 · Prep time: 15 min · Cook time: 20 min · Ready in: 30 min · Skill level: Intermediate
Ingredients
- 1 can of Grace coconut millk
- 1lb of shrimp (peeled and deveined)
- 2 red snapper filets
- 12 manila or little neck clams
- 1 teaspoon of minced garlic
- 1 medium sized onion
- 1 scallion
- 1 scotch bonnet pepper
- 2 springs of thyme
- 2 tablespoons of Grace fish sauce
- 1 lime
- 2 cups of water
- 1 tablespoon of canola or vegetable oil
Method
Place the peeled and deveined shrimp into a bowl. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of salt and squeeze the juice of 1/2 a lime over the shrimp. Stir the shrimp so that each piece is coated in the lime and salt mix.
On a cutting board, cut the snapper filets into large chunks. Place the snapper chunks into a bowl and then squeeze the juice of 1/2 a lime and sprinkle 1 teaspoon of salt onto the snapper.
Trim the onion, cut it in half, and remove the skin. Then place the onion down on a cutting board and slice the onion horizontally, using the lines on the onion as your guide. (For those of you who are more familiar with culinary terms, simply julienne the onions.)
In a medium sized saucepan, bring two cups of water to a boil. Once the water is boiling, toss in the clams and cover the saucepan. It should take about five minutes for the clams to open. Once the clams have opened, strain the clams, place them into a bowl, and set them aside.
In a large skillet, bring the oil to a high heat.
Once the skillet is nice and hot, add in the garlic, onion, and sprigs of thyme. Saute the garlic, onion, and thyme until the onion is translucent.
Add in the shrimp and stir for about one minute.
Add in the snapper and then stir for another minute.
Add in the fish sauce and stir for another minute.
Pour in the coconut milk and stir all the ingredients together a few more times. Then, cover the skillet, turn down the heat down to a low simmer, and allow the skillet ingredients to simmer for 13 minutes.
Once 13 minutes have passed, add in the clams, cover the skillet, and allow the ingredients to simmer for another two minutes.
Slice the scallion stalk in half, and add the scotch bonnet pepper and scallion stalk into the skillet. If you like spicy food, cut into the scotch bonnet pepper before placing it into the skillet. This will release the oils and really give the stew a kick. If you do not like spicy food, do NOT cut open the pepper.
Allow the pepper and scallion to simmer for one minute before serving the the Old Time Synting over white rice.
Enjoy!
